[Jan A]

Scam re Tax Returns​

This email purporting to be from the ATO has turned up several times in my inbox over the last week. My tax return was completed last year and the new one is not due, so what do they want to “remind” me about?? What is left to “complete”?? All they want is for the recipient to click on the link which will no doubt request personal details.

This is a scam. Do not click on the link. The ATO would never write to you in this way. Be assured that if the communication does not include your name, address and TFN, it is NOT from the ATO. If you want to check, call them on their advertised number.

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ATO myGov - Income Tax Return​

We are writing to remind you about your income tax return. To access your tax details and complete your return, please log in to your myGov account.

To proceed, click the button below to log in to your myGov profile:

[ Link provided ]
If you have any questions or need assistance with your income tax return, please visit the ATO website or contact the ATO directly.

Thank you for using myGov to manage your tax affairs.

Best regards,

Australian Taxation Office (ATO)

This is an automated message. Please do not reply to this email.
If you did not request this email, please contact the ATO immediately.
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[Jan A]

And still they come . . . . .

Below is a new one that arrived today. The heading is “Australian Government - Australian Taxation Office”, copied from their genuine letterhead.
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IMPORTANT NOTICE

Centrelink: Important update on your upcoming payment

ATO: Finalise Overdue Lodgement

Medicare: Important changes are coming soon

[Click to Proceed]

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This email is NOT from the ATO or any other government agency. It is complete nonsense. The ATO would not be sending out details on Centrelink payments or changes to Medicare. If you have an overdue lodgement, this is not how the ATO will advise you of that fact. My tax return was lodged and processed last year so cannot be overdue.

Once again, please be aware that anything like this is a fake. It has no identifying details, such as your name and Tax File Number. If the ATO is going to contact you, this is not how they will do it. Delete this rubbish!

 

[joanol]

I had an email also supposed to be ATO advising I had a $10,000refund. I am 80 years old haven't worked full time for 20 years so how come I have a refund. I deleted the email.

 

[Giannidifirenze]

The scammers are trying out their scam emails early… imagine the flood of scam emails purporting to be from the ATO and other services post 30/06 coming our way.

 

[Gunpark]

I get one or two e-mails a day supposedly from Telstra saying my e-mails will cease if I don't do such and such. None are from the correct address so straight to the dust bin.

 

[Tata]

It is NOT easy to tell a genuine massage from a scam! I got a SMS from Bankwest, no name provided, only informing that they tried to make payment, and there "was not enough funds in your account", the link provided was the four last numbers of an account. I dismissed it, but it turned out to be a genuine message. With Bankwest having their physical store closed, it is now harder to communicate with them.

 

[Jan A]

It is NOT easy to tell a genuine massage from a scam! I got a SMS from Bankwest, no name provided, only informing that they tried to make payment, and there "was not enough funds in your account", the link provided was the four last numbers of an account. I dismissed it, but it turned out was a genuine message.

Tata points out a very real problem. Telling a genuine message from a scam is not always easy. Organizations sending out messages need to be aware to distinguish their communications from scams by providing identifying information, such as name, address and account number. By failing to do so, they risk the recipient disregarding their message as a scam, leading to further problems with their customers. This happened to me recently with an email from an insurance company that was headed “Hi”. Talk about unprofessional! When I realized it was meant to be genuine, I called them and told them that I would not answer any further correspondence unless it contained my name and address. I informed the call centre operative that their correspondence was unprofessional and they needed to improve their practices. The next email from them contained my name and address.

I received a new one this afternoon purporting to be from “myGov”:
______________________________________________________________

Dear Taxpayer,

You have a new important message regarding your profile.

[Link provided saying “Read Message"]

Best Regards

Australian Taxation Office

The information contained in this message may be CONFIDENTIAL and is for the intended addressee only. Any unauthorized use, dissemination of the information, or copying of this message is prohibited. If you are not the intended addressee, please notify the sender immediately and delete this message.
______________________________________________________________

For a start, the ATO will never send anything out that says “Dear Taxpayer”. Nor will it say “Best Regards,” especially with a capital R, not appropriate in a signature which is a sentence fragment, not a heading where capitals would be used.

Additionally, the blurb at the bottom refers to the “intended addressee”. Who is that? There is no addressee listed in the message. “Taxpayer” is not an addressee.

What “profile” are they sending an “important message” about?? No doubt the link takes you to a site asking you to insert all your personal and banking details. The ATO already has that information and they would NEVER ask you to put it into an email like this.

If you get this one, follow the last 3 words of this email: “delete this message.”

 

[Wombat2u2004]

I regularly get phone calls on my landline from Indians saying they are from NBN or Telstra.
I tell them to FO and hang up on them.